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Nikki is the CEO of Pura Vida! eh? Inc. (Costa Rica Discounts), and the author of the guidebooks Moon Costa Rica (2019, 2021, 2023, and 2025 editions) and Moon Best of Costa Rica (2022 edition) from Moon Travel Guides. Together with her Costa Rican husband, Ricky, she operates the Costa Rica Travel Blog, created the online community DIY Costa Rica, built the Costa Rica Destination Tool, oversees the brand-new (summer 2023) Costa Rica Travel Shop, and designed the Costa Rica Trip Planning 101 E-Course. Also, Nikki wrote the Costa Rica cover feature for Wanderlust Magazine's sustainability-focused Travel Green List issue, showcased Costa Rica destinations and experiences on Rick Steves' Monday Night Travel show and podcast/radio show, and served as the Costa Rica Destination Editor for Essentialist, a luxury travel brand. Want to show your appreciation for her free article below? Thank Nikki here. ❤️️
Some of the information below is an excerpt from our Costa Rica beach guide. If you haven’t yet decided to visit Costa Rica’s northern Pacific coast / Guanacaste and you’re open to visiting beaches in any region of Costa Rica, let the beaches in our countrywide beach guide direct you where to go:
Costa Rica’s Northern Pacific / Guanacaste beaches
One of the most time-consuming parts of Costa Rica vacation planning is deciding on a beach destination, and with a total of 1,228 kilometers of coastline to choose from, the task isn’t an easy one. If you have no idea where you want to go in Costa Rica, our Costa Rica Destination Tool can help you with that; you can use it (as many times as you want) to narrow down 66 Costa Rica destinations according to nearly 150 criteria in less than 1 minute. Alternatively, if you’ve already decided to visit Costa Rica’s northern Pacific coast / Guanacaste but you’re not sure which beaches are found in the region, you’re in the right place. Our article below covers 25 beaches that stretch out along Costa Rica’s northern Pacific coast (Guanacaste), some popular and others remote, including Playa Avellanas, Playa Blanca, Playa Brasilito, Playa Conchal, Playa Danta, Playa Dantita, Playa del Coco, Playa Flamingo, Playa Grande, Playa Hermosa, Playa Junquillal, Playa Langosta, Playa Matapalo, Playa Minas, Playa Nacascolo, Playa Negra, Playa Ocotal, Playa Panama, Playa Potrero, Playa Puerto Viejo, Playa Real, Playa Tamarindo, Playa Ventanas, Playa Virador, and Playa Zapotillal.
If you’re destined for a different region of Costa Rica (not the northern Pacific coast / Guanacaste), don’t miss our related blog posts:
We created the above map to showcase where each Northern Pacific / Guanacaste beach is located. Included on the map are the following sites:
Playa Avellanas (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Blanca (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Brasilito (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Conchal (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Danta (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Dantita (marked by a sun icon)
Playas del Coco (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Flamingo (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Grande (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Hermosa (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Junquillal (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Langosta (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Matapalo (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Minas (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Nacascolo (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Negra (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Ocotal (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Panama (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Potrero (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Puerto Viejo (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Real (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Tamarindo (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Ventanas (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Virador (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Zapotillal (marked by a sun icon)
Playa Avellanas (GC)
Playa Avellanas (sometimes cited as Playa Avellana) is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits south of the coastal community of Tamarindo, Costa Rica.
Playa Blanca (GC)
Playa Blanca is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits south of the coastal community of Tamarindo, Costa Rica.
Playa Brasilito (GC)
Playa Brasilito is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It fronts the coastal community of Brasilito, Costa Rica, and connects with the north end of Playa Conchal.
Playa Conchal (GC)
Playa Conchal is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits south of the coastal community of Brasilito, Costa Rica.
Playa Danta (GC)
Playa Danta is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It fronts the coastal community of Las Catalinas, Costa Rica. To learn more about Playa Danta, including beach details, development, safety, access, parking, and more, see our related blog post: Photos of Playa Danta Costa Rica (Guanacaste) From Our Own Personal Collection.
Playa Dantita (GC)
Playa Dantita is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits north of the coastal community of Las Catalinas, Costa Rica. To learn more about Playa Dantita, including beach details, development, safety, access, parking, and more, see our related blog post: Photos of Playa Dantita Costa Rica (Guanacaste) From Our Own Personal Collection.
Playa del Coco (GC)
Playa del Coco is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It fronts the coastal community of Playas del Coco, Costa Rica.
Playa Flamingo (GC)
Playa Flamingo is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It fronts the coastal community of Playa Flamingo, Costa Rica.
Playa Grande (GC)
Playa Grande is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It fronts the coastal community of Playa Grande, Costa Rica, and falls within the boundary of the Marino Las Baulas National Park. Payment of a national park entrance fee is not required to access this beach, unless your visit is part of an authorized turtle nesting/turtle observation tour.
Playa Hermosa (GC)
South end of Playa Hermosa (Guanacaste)North end of Playa Hermosa (Guanacaste)
Playa Hermosa is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It fronts the coastal community of Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica. To learn more about Playa Hermosa, including beach details, development, safety, access, parking, and more, see our related blog post: Photos of Playa Hermosa Costa Rica (Guanacaste) From Our Own Personal Collection.
Playa Junquillal (GC)
Playa Junquillal is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits south of the coastal community of Tamarindo, Costa Rica. To learn more about Playa Junquillal, including beach details, development, safety, access, parking, and more, see our related blog post: Photos of Playa Junquillal Costa Rica (Guanacaste) From Our Own Personal Collection.
Playa Langosta (GC)
Playa Langosta is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits southwest of the coastal community of Tamarindo, Costa Rica.
Playa Matapalo (GC)
Playa Matapalo is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits west of the coastal community of Playas del Coco, Costa Rica.
Playa Minas (GC)
Playa Minas (also known as Playa Zapotillal) is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits west of the coastal community of Brasilito, Costa Rica.
Playa Nacascolo (GC)
Playa Nacascolo is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits on the east side of Costa Rica’s Papagayo Peninsula. To learn more about Playa Nacascolo, including beach details, development, safety, access, parking, and more, see our related blog post: Photos of Playa Nacascolo Costa Rica (Guanacaste) From Our Own Personal Collection.
Playa Negra (GC)
Playa Negra is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits south of the coastal community of Tamarindo, Costa Rica.
Playa Ocotal (GC)
Playa Ocotal is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits west of the coastal community of Playas del Coco, Costa Rica.
Playa Panama (GC)
Playa Panama is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits north of the coastal community of Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica.
Playa Potrero (GC)
Playa Potrero is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It fronts the coastal community of Potrero, Costa Rica.
Playa Puerto Viejo (GC)
Playa Puerto Viejo is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits west of the coastal community of Brasilito, Costa Rica. To learn more about Playa Puerto Viejo, including beach details, development, safety, access, parking, and more, see our related blog post: Photos of Playa Puerto Viejo Costa Rica (Guanacaste) From Our Own Personal Collection.
Playa Real (GC)
Playa Real is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits west of the coastal community of Brasilito, Costa Rica.
Playa Tamarindo (GC)
Playa Tamarindo is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It fronts the coastal community of Tamarindo, Costa Rica. To learn more about Playa Tamarindo, including beach details, development, safety, access, parking, and more, see our related blog post: Photos of Playa Tamarindo Costa Rica (Guanacaste) From Our Own Personal Collection.
Playa Ventanas (GC)
Playa Ventanas is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits north of the coastal community of Playa Grande, Costa Rica.
Playa Virador (GC)
Playa Virador is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits on the west side of Costa Rica’s Papagayo Peninsula. To learn more about Playa Virador, including beach details, development, safety, access, parking, and more, see our related blog post: Photos of Playa Virador Costa Rica (Guanacaste) From Our Own Personal Collection.
Playa Zapotillal (GC)
Playa Zapotillal (also known as Playa Minas) is located in the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. It sits west of the coastal community of Brasilito, Costa Rica.
Pura vida!
Do you have questions about beaches in the Northern Pacific region (Guanacaste), want to know which beach is the best for you to visit based on the experiences you’re looking to have, or need help incorporating a visit to one of the beaches described above into your vacation? No problem! When you’re ready, make an appointment here to communicate with me (Nikki) privately and we can discuss these and other topics to get your questions answered fast and your Costa Rica trip poised for success. Pura vida, amigos! 🙂
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Summary
Article Name
Northern Pacific / Guanacaste Beaches In Costa Rica
Description
Want to visit one of the Northern Pacific / Guanacaste beaches in Costa Rica? Don't miss these noteworthy beaches!
Hi, we’re thinking of staying at Casa Conde Beachfront Hotel in Papagayo, Panama Beach after staying in La Fortuna. Do you know how long a drive it is from La Fortuna and then to the San Jose airport? Would it be better to leave from Liberia airport?
Thank you for any info you can provide!
Lisa
The drive from La Fortuna to Casa Conde (Playa Panama) takes a little more than 3 hours. For traveling from Casa Conde to an airport for a your flight home, Liberia will be much closer to you in Playa Panama, but you can fly out of San Jose if you want and don’t mind the extra few hours’ drive (if the schedule or flight pricing works better for you to fly out of San Jose). The drive from Casa Conde to the LIR (Liberia/Guanacaste) airport is roughly 20 minutes. The drive from Casa Conde to the SJO (San Jose/Alajuela) airport is roughly 4.5 hours, give or take some time for traffic.
We are in Coco now after covering the central coast. What a difference. No idea what anybody would go to Coco. Poor beach and unattractive town. We are staying in Hermosa and can’t say we have had the same experience as you with Hermosa. Perhaps because of the run off from all the rain, but the sand is more brown and black vs. tan and the water is quite murky. Really liked Tamarindo. Not nearly built up as it seemed from all the different accounts we read.
Thanks so much for sharing your account with us! We agree, Playas del Coco attracts a specific type of traveler; the destination doesn’t tend to sit well with everyone, especially travelers like yourselves who experience other beach areas prior to arriving. If you visited the Manuel Antonio area at all while on the central Pacific coast, you’ll note there’s a stark difference between it and Playas del Coco. Everything from the infrastructure to the scenery to the atmosphere is different. While Manuel Antonio and other beach towns along the central Pacific coast appeal to the masses with ample tour offerings, accommodations, and dining opportunities, Playas del Coco (in our opinion) is best visited by travelers who want to spend time in a small but lively beach town with decent nightlife. Our take on Playa Hermosa is different; to us, it stands out from Playas del Coco being that it’s smaller and quieter. This being said, November, at the end of a long wet season, is one of the most difficult months to encounter pristine beaches and water on the Pacific coast, so the time of year that you visited likely played a significant factor in your overall experience.
As for Tamarindo, I’m glad you enjoyed your time there! The town is not as developed as many first-time visitors envision it to be, but compared to most beach towns in Costa Rica, it is very commercial. I’m glad to hear that you didn’t find the development in town to be a disadvantage, though, and that you were able to experience a variety of Costa Rican beach communities during your trip.
I would surely like to dive into the playa flamingo & tamarindo beaches. Well with this awesome beaches in costa rica, it’s truly a paradise! Thanks for sharing insightful article!
I’m not sure I understand your question. Are you looking for beaches on the Caribbean side of Costa Rica where you can collect seaweed?
Until soon!
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Tagged: beach, coco, conchal, costa rica, costa rica travel, costa rica travel tips, costa rica vacation, flamingo, guanacaste, hermosa, ocotal, playa conchal, playa del coco, playa flamingo, playa hermosa, playa ocotal, playa real, playa tamarindo, real, tamarindo, tourism, travel, travel tips